Against incredible odds the determined people of Atlantic Canada are working diligently to curb the ever increasing menace of a large ice rat population that is causing untold damage to the Nation’s commercial fish stocks.
The Canadian government, in partnership with local fishermen, is planning an organized and efficient hunt of the growing ice rat population in March of this year.
Large bodied ice rats often can be found along the East Coast of Canada in the late winter and early spring.
Recent population estimates for this dangerous carnivore, some weighing in excess of 100 pounds, place the population at between 5 and 6 million animals.
This number is more than 10 times the human population in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador near where most of the ice rats migrate each spring.
In recent years there have been an increasing number of reports of large ice rats traveling in packs of a dozen or more, trapping large numbers of valuable commercial fish species, such as the endangered Atlantic cod, into local bays and decimating thousands at a time in a wild feeding frenzy.
Ice rats have been videotaped leaving the ice, swimming up under large cod fish, ripping the stomachs out of them and eating their soft underbellies before leaving the rest of the fish behind and moving on to its next victim.
Recently small numbers of ice rats have also been spotted further inland on the island of Newfoundland, in places where they have never been seen before. These individuals are believed to be traveling along river beds and streams to hunt and eat inland fish such as salmon or trout.
Environmentally alert and ecologically sensitive local fishermen have expressed no interest in completely ridding the coastal areas of the migrating ice rats since they are a native to the area. Fishermen are instead hopeful that an annual hunt with a well managed quota will at least help ensure that the population does not expand or encroach further into more populated areas.
As one fisherman put it, “We just want to keep the things under control. If we don’t there won’t be fish left.”
Recently the animal rights group PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) which is known for its unique and often quirky activities when it comes to promoting their cause also sounded the alarm by singling out the world’s fish as a species at risk.
In promoting the protection of the ocean’s fish populations, PETA has begun referring to all fish species as “Sea Kittens” in the hope that people will be less likely to eat them.
As PETA campaign co-ordinator Ashley Byrne told Canwest News Service this week, "Knowing that the fish sticks in the school cafeteria are really made out of tortured sea kittens makes most kids want to lose their lunch."
With a similar goal in mind, Canadian fishermen are also hoping to protect the overall Atlantic fish or “Sea Kitten” population by limiting the growing numbers of ice rats, sometimes known as harp seals, which are known to destroy millions of tons of “Sea Kittens” each and every year.
